A Modeling Study of the Effects of Direct Radiative Forcing Due to Carbonaceous Aerosol on the Climate in East Asia

The study investigated the effects of global direct radiative forcing due to carbonaceous aerosol on the climate in East Asia, using the CAM3 developed by NCAR. The results showed that carbonaceous aerosols cause negative forcing at the top of the atmosphere （TOA） and surface under clear sky conditions, but positive forcing at the TOA and weak negative forcing at the surface under all sky conditions. Hence, clouds could change the sign of the direct radiative forcing at the TOA, and weaken the forcing at the surface. Carbonaceous aerosols have distinct effects on the summer climate in East Asia. In southern China and India, it caused the surface temperature to increase, but the total cloud cover and precipitation to decrease. However, the opposite effects are caused for most of northern China and Bangladesh. Given the changes in temperature, vertical velocity, and surface streamflow caused by carbonaceous aerosol in this simulation, carbonaceous aerosol could also induce summer precipitation to decrease in southern China but increase in northern China.

Indirect Radiative Forcing and Climatic Effect of the Anthropogenic Nitrate Aerosol on Regional Climate of China

The regional climate model （RegCM3） and a tropospheric atmosphere chemistry model （TACM） were coupled, thus a regional climate chemistry modeling system （RegCCMS） was constructed, which was applied to investigate the spatial distribution of anthropogenic nitrate aerosols, indirect radiative forcing, as well as its climatic effect over China. TACM includes the thermodynamic equilibrium model ISORROPIA and a condensed gas-phase chemistry model. Investigations show that the concentration of nitrate aerosols is relatively high over North and East China with a maximum of 29μg m-3 in January and 8 μg m-3 in July. Due to the influence of air temperature on thermodynamic equilibrium, wet scavenging of precipitation and the monsoon climate, there are obvious seasonal differences in nitrate concentrations. The average indirect radiative forcing at the tropopause due to nitrate aerosols is -1.63 W m 2 in January and -2.65 W m 2 in July, respectively. In some areas, indirect radiative forcing reaches -10 W m-2. Sensitivity tests show that nitrate aerosols make the surface air temperature drop and the precipitation reduce on the national level. The mean changes in surface air temperature and precipitation are 0.13 K and -0.01 mm d-1 in January and -0.09 K and -0.11 mm d-1 in July, respectively, showing significant differences in different regions.

A Modeling Study of Effective Radiative Forcing and Climate Response Due to Tropospheric Ozone

This study simulates the effective radiative forcing （ERF） of tropospheric ozone from 1850 to 2013 and its effects on global climate using an aerosol-climate coupled model, BCC_AGCM2.0. I_CUACE/Aero, in combination with OMI （Ozone Monitoring Instrument） satellite ozone data. According to the OMI observations, the global annual mean tropospheric col- umn ozone （TCO） was 33.9 DU in 2013, and the largest TCO was distributed in the belts between 30°N and 45°N and at approximately 30°S; the annual mean TCO was higher in the Northern Hemisphere than that in the Southern Hemisphere; and in boreal summer and autumn, the global mean TCO was higher than in winter and spring. The simulated ERF due to the change in tropospheric ozone concentration from 1850 to 2013 was 0.46 W m-2, thereby causing an increase in the global annual mean surface temperature by 0.36°C, and precipitation by 0.02 mm d-1 （the increase of surface temperature had a significance level above 95%）. The surface temperature was increased more obviously over the high latitudes in both hemispheres, with the maximum exceeding 1.4°C in Siberia. There were opposite changes in precipitation near the equator, with an increase of 0.5 mm d- 1 near the Hawaiian Islands and a decrease of about -0.6 mm d- 1 near the middle of the Indian Ocean.

Aerosol Optical Properties and Its Radiative Forcing over Yulin, China in 2001 and 2002

The aerosol optical properties and direct radiative forcing over the Mu Us desert of northern China, acquired through a CE318 sunphotometer of the ground-based Aerosol Robotic Network （AERONET）, are analyzed. The seasonal variations in the aerosol optical properties are examined. The effect of meteorological elements （pressure, temperature, water vapor pressure, relative humidity and wind speed） on the aerosol optical properties is also studied. Then, the sources and optical properties under two different cases, a dust event and a pollution event, are compared. The results show that the high aerosol optical depth （AOD） found in Yulin was mostly attributed to the occurrence of dust events in spring from the Mu Us desert and deserts of West China and Mongolia, as well as the impacts of anthropogenic pollutant particles from the middle part of China in the other seasons. The seasonal variation and the probability distribution of the radiative forcing and the radiative forcing efficiency at the surface and the top of the atmosphere are analyzed and regressed using the linear and Gaussian regression methods.

Water Vapor and Cloud Radiative Forcings over the Pacific Ocean Simulated by the LASG/IAP AGCM:Sensitivity to Convection Schemes

Characteristics of the total clear-sky greenhouse effect （GA） and cloud radiative forcings （CRFs）, along with the radiative-related water vapor and cloud properties simulated by the Spectral Atmospheric Model developed by LASGIAP （SAMIL） are evaluated. Impacts of the convection scheme on the simulation of CRFs are discussed by using two AMIP （Atmospheric Model Inter-comparison Project） type simulations employing different convection schemes： the new Zhang-McFarlane （NZH） and Tiedtke （TDK） convection schemes. It shows that both the climatological GA and its response to El Nio warming are simulated well, both in terms of spatial pattern and magnitude. The impact of the convection scheme on GA is not significant. The climatological longwave CRF （LWCRF） and its response to El Nio warming are simulated well, but with a prominently weaker magnitude. The simulation of the climatology （response） of LWCRF in the NZH （TDK） run is slightly more realistic than in the TDK （NZH） simulation, indicating significant impacts of the convection scheme. The shortwave CRF （SWCRF） shows large biases in both spatial pattern and magnitude, and the results from the TDK run are better than those from the NZH run. A spuriously excessive negative climatological SWCRF over the southeastern Pacific and an insufficient response of SWCRF to El Nio warming over the tropical Pacific are seen in the NZH run. These two biases are alleviated in the TDK run, since it produces vigorous convection, which is related to the low threshold for convection to take place. Also, impacts of the convection scheme on the cloud profile are discussed.

The Impacts of Optical Properties on Radiative Forcing Due to Dust Aerosol

There are large uncertainties in the quantitative assessment of radiative effects due to atmospheric dust aerosol. The optical properties contribute much to those uncertainties. The authors perform several sensitivity experiments to estimate the impacts of optical characteristics on regional radiative forcing in this paper. The experiments involve in refractive indices, single scattering aibedo, asymmetry factor and optical depth. An updated dataset of refractive indices representing East Asian dust and the one recommended by the World Meteorology Organization （WMO） are contrastively analyzed and used. A radiative transfer code for solar and thermal infrared radiation with detailed aerosol parameterization is employed. The strongest emphasis is on the refractive indices since other optical parameters strongly depend on it, and the authors found a strong sensitivity of radiative forcing on refractive indices. Studies show stronger scattering, weaker absorption and forward scattering of the East Asian dust particles at solar wavelengths, which leads to higher negative forcing, lower positive forcing and bigger net forcing at the top of the atmosphere （TOA） than that of the WMO dust model. It is also found that the TOA forcings resulting from these two dust models have opposite signs in certain regions, which implies the importance of accurate measurements of optical properties in the quantitative estimation of radiative forcing.

A Study on Sulfate Optical Properties and Direct Radiative Forcing Using LASG-IAP General Circulation Model

The direct radiative forcing （DRF） of sulfate aerosols depends highly on the atmospheric sulfate loading and the meteorology, both of which undergo strong regional and seasonal variations. Because the optical properties of sulfate aerosols are also sensitive to atmospheric relative humidity, in this study we first examine the scheme for optical properties that considers hydroscopic growth. Next, we investigate the seasonal and regional distributions of sulfate DRF using the sulfate loading simulated from NCAR CAM-Chem together with the meteorology modeled from a spectral atmospheric general circulation model （AGCM） developed by LASG-IAP. The global annual-mean sulfate loading of 3.44 mg m-2 is calculated to yield the DRF of -1.03 and -0.57 W m-2 for clear-sky and all-sky conditions, respectively. However, much larger values occur on regional bases. For example, the maximum all-sky sulfate DRF over Europe, East Asia, and North America can be up to -4.0 W m-2. The strongest all-sky sulfate DRF occurs in the Northern Hemispheric July, with a hemispheric average of -1.26 W m-2. The study results also indicate that the regional DRF are strongly affected by cloud and relative humidity, which vary considerably among the regions during different seasons. This certainly raises the issue that the biases in model-sinmlated regional meteorology can introduce biases into the sulfate DRF. Hence, the model processes associated with atmospheric humidity and cloud physics should be modified in great depth to improve the simulations of the LASG-IAP AGCM and to reduce the uncertainty of sulfate direct effects on global and regional climate in these simulations.

Cloud Radiative Forcing in Asian Monsoon Region Simulated by IPCC AR4 AMIP Models

This study examines cloud radiative forcing （CRF） in the Asian monsoon region （0° 50°N, 60° 150°E） simulated by Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change （IPCC） Fourth Assessment Report （AR4） AMIP models. During boreal winter, no model realistically reproduces the larger long-wave cloud radiative forcing （LWCF） over the Tibet Plateau （TP） and only a couple of models reasonably capture the larger short-wave CRF （SWCF） to the east of the TP. During boreal summer, there are larger biases for central location and intensity of simulated CRF in active convective regions. The CRF biases are closely related to the rainfall biases in the models. Quantitative analysis further indicates that the correlation between simulated CRF and observations are not high, and that the biases and diversity in SWCF are larger than that in LWCF. The annual cycle of simulated CRF over East Asia （0°-50°N, 100°-145°E） is also examined. Though many models capture the basic annual cycle in tropics, strong LWCF and SWCF to the east of the TP beginning in early spring are underestimated by most models. As a whole, GFDL-CM2.1, MPI-ECHAM5, UKMO-HadGAM1, and MIROC3.2 （medres） perform well for CRF simulation in the Asian monsoon region, and the multi-model ensemble （MME） has improved results over the individual simulations. It is suggested that strengthening the physical parameterizations involved over the TP, and improving cumulus convection processes and model experiment design are crucial to CRF simulation in the Asian monsoon region.

Shortwave Cloud Radiative Forcing on Major Stratus Cloud Regions in AMIP-type Simulations of CMIP3 and CMIP5 Models

Cloud and its radiative effects are major sources of uncertainty that lead to simulation discrepancies in climate models. In this study, shortwave cloud radiative forcing （SWCF） over major stratus regions is evaluated for Atmospheric Models Intercomparison Project （AMIP）-type simulations of models involved in the third and fifth phases of the Coupled Models Intercomparison Project （CMIP3 and CMIP5）. Over stratus regions, large deviations in both climatological mean and seasonal cycle of SWCF are found among the models. An ambient field sorted by dynamic （vertical motion） and thermodynamic （inversion strength or stability） regimes is constructed and used to measure the response of SWCF to large-scale controls. In marine boundary layer regions, despite both CMIP3 and CMIP5 models being able to capture well the center and range of occurrence frequency for the ambient field, most of the models fail to simulate the dependence of SWCF on boundary layer inversion and the insensitivity of SWCF to vertical motion. For eastern China, there are large differences even in the simulated ambient fields. Moreover, almost no model can reproduce intense SWCF in rising motion and high stability regimes. It is also found that models with a finer grid resolution have no evident superiority than their lower resolution versions. The uncertainties relating to SWCF in state-of-the-art models may limit their performance in IPCC experiments.

Radiative Forcing and Climate Response Due to Black Carbon in Snow and Ice

The radiative forcing and climate response due to black carbon（BC） in snow and/or ice were investigated by integrating observed effects of BC on snow/ice albedo into an atmospheric general circulation model（BCC AGCM2.0.1） developed by the National Climate Center（NCC） of the China Meteorological Administration（CMA）.The results show that the global annual mean surface radiative forcing due to BC in snow/ice is ＋0.042 W m 2,with maximum forcing found over the Tibetan Plateau and regional mean forcing exceeding ＋2.8 W m 2.The global annual mean surface temperature increased 0.071 C due to BC in snow/ice.Positive surface radiative forcing was clearly shown in winter and spring and increased the surface temperature of snow/ice in the Northern Hemisphere.The surface temperatures of snow-covered areas of Eurasia and North America in winter（spring） increased by 0.83 C（0.6 C） and 0.83 C（0.46 C）,respectively.Snowmelt rates also increased greatly,leading to earlier snowmelt and peak runoff times.With the rise of surface temperatures in the Arctic,more water vapor could be released into the atmosphere,allowing easier cloud formation,which could lead to higher thermal emittance in the Arctic.However,the total cloud forcing could decrease due to increasing cloud cover,which will offset some of the positive feedback mechanism of the clouds.

SIMULATION OF SPATIO-TEMPORAL DISTRIBUTION CHARACTERISTICS AND RADIATIVE FORCING OF ORGANIC CARBON AEROSOLS IN CHINA

The International Centre for Theoretical Physics(ICTP,Italy) Regional Climate Model version 3.0(RegCM3) is used to simulate spatio-temporal distribution characteristics and radiative forcing(RF) of organic carbon(OC) aerosols in and around China.The preliminary simulation results show that OC aerosols are mostly concentrated in the area to the south of Yellow River and east of Tibetan Plateau.There is a decreasing trend of column burden of OC aerosols from south to north in China.The maximum value of column burden of OC aerosols is above 3 mg/m2 and located in the central and southern China,southeastern Tibet,and southwestern China's Yunnan,Guizhou,Sichuan provinces.The simulation on the seasonal variation shows that the maximum value of column burden of OC aerosols appears in winter and the secondary value is in spring and the minimum in summer.The RF of OC aerosols which varies seasonally is negative at the top of the atmosphere(TOA) and surface.The spatio-temporal characteristics of the RF of OC aerosols are basically consistent with that of IPCC,implying the high accuracy of the parameterization scheme for OC aerosols in RegCM3.

Grid-cell Aerosol Direct Shortwave Radiative Forcing Calculated Using the SBDART Model with MODIS and AERONET Observations：An Application in Winter and Summer in Eastern China

Taking winter and summer in eastern China as an example application, a grid-cell method of aerosol direct radiative forcing（ADRF） calculation is examined using the Santa Barbara DISORT Atmospheric Radiative Transfer（SBDART） model with inputs from MODIS and AERONET observations and reanalysis data. Results show that there are significant seasonal and regional differences in climatological mean aerosol optical parameters and ADRF. Higher aerosol optical depth（AOD）occurs in summer and two prominent high aerosol loading centers are observed. Higher single scattering albedo（SSA） in summer is likely associated with the weak absorbing secondary aerosols. SSA is higher in North China during summer but higher in South China during winter. Aerosols induce negative forcing at the top of the atmosphere（TOA） and surface during both winter and summer, which may be responsible for the decrease in temperature and the increase in relative humidity.Values of ADRF at the surface are four times stronger than those at the TOA. Both AOD and ADRF present strong interannual variations; however, their amplitudes are larger in summer. Moreover, patterns and trends of ADRF do not always correspond well to those of AOD. Differences in the spatial distributions of ADRF between strong and weak monsoon years are captured effectively. Generally, the present results justify that to calculate grid-cell ADRF at a large scale using the SBDART model with observational aerosol optical properties and reanalysis data is an effective approach.

The Significant Role of Radiosonde-measured Cloud-base Height in the Estimation of Cloud Radiative Forcing

The satellite-based quantification of cloud radiative forcing remains poorly understood,due largely to the limitation or uncertainties in characterizing cloud-base height(CBH).Here,we use the CBH data from radiosonde measurements over China in combination with the collocated cloud-top height(CTH) and cloud properties from MODIS/Aqua to quantify the impact of CBH on shortwave cloud radiative forcing(SWCRF).The climatological mean SWCRF at the surface(SWCRFSUR),at the top of the atmosphere(SWCRFTOA),and in the atmosphere(SWCRFATM) are estimated to be-97.14,-84.35,and 12.79 W m^(-2),respectively for the summers spanning 2010 to 2018 over China.To illustrate the role of the cloud base,we assume four scenarios according to vertical profile patterns of cloud optical depth(COD).Using the CTH and cloud properties from MODIS alone results in large uncertainties for the estimation of SWCRFATM,compared with those under scenarios that consider the CBH.Furthermore,the biases of the CERES estimation of SWCRFATM tend to increase in the presence of thick clouds with low CBH.Additionally,the discrepancy of SWCRFATM relative to that calculated without consideration of CBH varies according to the vertical profile of COD.When a uniform COD vertical profile is assumed,the largest SWCRF discrepancies occur during the early morning or late afternoon.By comparison,the two-point COD vertical distribution assumption has the largest uncertainties occurring at noon when the solar irradiation peaks.These findings justify the urgent need to consider the cloud vertical structures when calculating the SWCRF which is otherwise neglected.

Effect of Particle Shape on Dust Shortwave Direct Radiative Forcing Calculations Based on MODIS Observations for a Case Study

Assuming spheroidal and spherical particle shapes for mineral dust aerosols,the effect of particle shape on dust aerosol optical depth retrievals,and subsequently on instantaneous shortwave direct radiative forcing（SWDRF） at the top of the atmosphere（TOA）,is assessed based on Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer（MODIS） data for a case study.Specifically,a simplified aerosol retrieval algorithm based on the principle of the Deep Blue aerosol retrieval method is employed to retrieve dust aerosol optical depths,and the Fu–Liou radiative transfer model is used to derive the instantaneous SWDRF of dust at the TOA for cloud-free conditions.Without considering the effect of particle shape on dust aerosol optical depth retrievals,the effect of particle shape on the scattering properties of dust aerosols（e.g.,extinction efficiency,single scattering albedo and asymmetry factor） is negligible,which can lead to a relative difference of at most 5% for the SWDRF at the TOA.However,the effect of particle shape on the SWDRF cannot be neglected provided that the effect of particle shape on dust aerosol optical depth retrievals is also taken into account for SWDRF calculations.The corresponding results in an instantaneous case study show that the relative differences of the SWDRF at the TOA between spheroids and spheres depend critically on the scattering angles at which dust aerosol optical depths are retrieved,and can be up to 40% for low dust-loading conditions.

An Updated Estimation of Radiative Forcing due to CO_2 and Its Effect on Global Surface Temperature Change

New estimations of radiative forcing due to CO2 were calculated using updated concentration data of CO2 and a high-resolution radiative transfer model. The stratospheric adjusted radiative forcing （ARF） due to CO2 from the year 1750 to the updated year of 2010 was found to have increased to 1.95 W m-2, which was 17% larger than that of the IPCC＇s 4th Assessment Report because of the rapid increase in CO2 concentrations since 2005. A new formula is proposed to accurately describe the relationship between the ARF of CO2 and its concentration. Furthermore, according to the relationship between the ARF and surface temperature change, possible changes in equilibrium surface temperature were estimated under the scenarios that the concentration of CO2 increases to 1.5, 2, 2.5, 3, 3.5 and 4 times that of the concentration in the year 2008. The result was values of ＋2.2℃, ＋3.8℃, ＋5.1℃, ＋6.2℃, ＋7.1℃ and ＋8.0℃ respectively, based on a middle-level climate sensitivity parameter of 0.8 K （W m 3）-1. Non-equilibrium surface temperature changes over the next 500 years were also calculated under two kinds of emission scenarios （pulsed and sustained emissions） as a comparison, according to the Absolute Global Temperature change Potential （AGTP） of CO2. Results showed that CO2 will likely continue to contribute to global warming if no emission controls are imposed, and the effect on the Earth-atmosphere system will be difficult to restore to its original level.

Impact of Arctic Oscillation on cloud radiative forcing and September sea ice retreat

The Arctic Oscillation(AO)has important effects on the sea ice change in terms of the dynamic and thermodynamic processes.However,while the dynamic processes of AO have been widely explored,the thermodynamic processes of AO need to be further discussed.In this paper,we use the fifth state-of-the-art reanalysis at European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts(ERA5)from 1979 to 2020 to investigate the relationship between AO and the surface springtime longwave(LW)cloud radiative forcing(CRF),summertime shortwave(SW)CRF in the Arctic region(65°-90°N).In addition,the contribution of CRF induced by AO to the sea ice change is also discussed.Results indicate that the positive(negative)anomalies of springtime LW CRF and summertime SW CRF are generally detected over the Arctic Ocean during the enhanced positive(negative)AO phase in spring and summer,respectively.Meanwhile,while the LW(SW)CRF generally has a positive correlation with AO index(AOI)in spring(summer)over the entire Arctic Ocean,this correlation is statistically significant over 70°-85°N and 120°W-90°E(i.e.,region of interest(ROI))in both seasons.Moreover,the response of CRF to the atmospheric conditions varies in spring and summer.We also find that the positive springtime(summertime)AOI tends to decrease(increase)the sea ice in September,and this phenomenon is especially prominent over the ROI.The sensitivity study among sea ice extent,CRF and AOI further reveals that decreases(increases)in September sea ice over the ROI are partly attributed to the springtime LW(summertime SW)CRF during the positive AOI.The present study provides a new pattern of AO affecting sea ice change via cloud radiative effects,which might benefit the sea ice forecast improvement.

Aerosol Direct Radiative Forcing over Shandong Peninsula in East Asia from 2004 to 2011

Recent vigorous industrialization and urbanization in Shandong Peninsula,China,have resulted in the emission of heavy anthropogenic aerosols over the region.The annual means of aerosol optical depth(AOD),Angstrom exponent(α),single-scattering albedo(SSA),aerosol direct radiative forcing(ARF),surface radiative forcing(SRF),and top-of-the atmospheric radiative forcing(TOA) recorded during 2004–2011 were respectively 0.67±0.19,1.25±0.24,0.93±0.03,47±9 W m-2,-61±9 W m-2,and-14±8 W m-2.The aerosol optical properties and ARF characteristics showed remarkable seasonal variations due to cycle changes in the aerosol components and dominance type.The atmosphere-surface system was cooled by ARF in all years of the study due to anthropogenic sulfate and nitrate emission and sea salt aerosols.The magnitude of TOA cooling was larger in summer(-15±17 W m-2) and autumn(-12±7 W m-2) than that in spring(-8±4 W m-2) and winter(-9±10 W m-2).

Direct Radiative Forcing of Anthropogenic Aerosols over Oceans from Satellite Observations

Anthropogenic aerosols play an important role in the atmospheric energy balance. Anthropogenic aerosol optical depth （AOD） and its accompanying shortwave radiative forcing （RF） are usually simulated by nu- merical models. Recently, with the development of space-borne instruments and sophisticated retrieval algorithms, it has become possible to estimate aerosol radiative forcing based on satellite observations. In this study, we have estimated shortwave direct radiative forcing due to anthropogenic aerosols over oceans in all-sky conditions by combining clouds and the Single Scanner Footprint data of the Clouds and Earth’s Radiant Energy System （CERES/SSF） experiment, which provide measurements of upward shortwave fluxes at the top of atmosphere, with Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer （MODIS） aerosol and cloud products. We found that globally averaged aerosol radiative forcing over oceans in the clear-sky conditions and all-sky conditions were -1.03±0.48 W m-2 and -0.34 ±0.16 W m-2, respectively. Direct radiative forcing by anthropogenic aerosols shows large regional and seasonal variations. In some regions and in particular seasons, the magnitude of direct forcing by anthropogenic aerosols can be comparable to the forcing of greenhouse gases. However, it shows that aerosols caused the cooling effect, rather than warming effect from global scale, which is different from greenhouse gases.

The Radiative Forcing of Aerosols in a West Africa Sahelian Urban City: Case Study of Ouagadougou

This paper is an assessment of radiative forcing caused by atmospheric aerosols in an urban city in West Africa. It is carried out in Ouagadougou in Burkina Faso and is an illustration of the radiative impact in most of the large Sahelian urban cities which are under the same climatic influences and whose populations present similarities in their socio-economic aspects. Using the GAME code, the radiative forcing was calculated at the top of the atmosphere, in the atmospheric layer and at the earth’s surface. The results showed overall a cooling effect at the top of the atmosphere due to the backscattering in space of the incident radiation, a heating in the atmospheric layer due to the absorption effect and a surface cooling justified by the attenuation of radiation crossing the atmosphere. Using monthly average values of optical properties, vertical temperature and humidity profiles, daily temperatures and surface albedo, the simulation yielded forcing values ranging from -6.77 W/m2 to -2.56 W/m2 at the top of the atmosphere, from 15.8 W/m2 to 34.7 W/m2 in the atmospheric layer and from -41.00 W/m2 to -21.68 W/m2 at the earth’s surface. In addition, the warming was simulated in the first atmospheric layer (in contact with the surface), and the results show values ranging from 0.8°C to 1.8°C. The study of the annual variability of the results showed a strong correlation between the radiative forcing and the seasonal succession characteristic of the climate in West Africa with the extreme values in the month of March (characteristic of the dry and hot season) and in the month of August (characteristic of the rainy season).

Aerosol optical properties and its direct radiative forcing over Tibetan Plateau from 2006 to 2017

Studies on optical properties of aerosols can reduce the uncertainty for modelling direct radiative forcing(DRF)and improve the accuracy for discussing aerosols effects on the Tibetan Plateau(TP)climate.This study investigated the spatiotemporal variation of aerosol optical and microphysical properties over TP based on OMI and MERRA2,and assessed the influence of aerosol optical properties on DRF at NamCo station(30°46.44′N,90°59.31′E,4730 m)in the central TP from 2006 to 2017 based on a long measurement of AERONET and the modelling of SBDART model.The results show that aerosol optical depth(AOD)exhibits obvious seasonal variation over TP,with higher AOD500nm(>0.75)during spring and summer,and lower value(<0.25)in autumn and winter.The aerosol concentrations show a fluctuated rising from 1980 to 2000,significant increasing from 2000 to 2010 and slight declining trend after 2013.Based on sensitivity experiments,it is found that AOD and single scattering albedo(SSA)have more important impact on the DRF compared withαvalues and ASY.When AOD440nm increases by 60%,DRF at the TOA and ATM is increased by 57.2%and 60.2%,respectively.When SSA440nm increases by 20%,DRF at the TOA and ATM decreases by 121%and 96.7%,respectively.